June 5 in Cardinals History

It was on this date in 1962, when Stan Musial hit his 12th and last walk-off home run of his career. He was facing Dave Sisler of the Reds in the 11th with the game tied 9-9 when he blasted the home run.

The Cardinals have five WOW’s (Walk-Off Wins) on this date in 1979, 1981, 2007, 2010, and 2011.

1913– Cardinals owner Chris Von der Ahe died.

1932– The St. Louis Cardinals purchased Mickey Heath from the Cincinnati Reds.

1932– The Cincinnati Reds purchased Harvey Hendrick from the St. Louis Cardinals.

1938– Stanley Francis Musial signs his first professional baseball contract while still in high school. The Cardinals held it and didn’t file the contract with the league until Musial graduated.

1949– The five-year ban placed on players who jumped to the Mexican League is lifted by Commissioner Happy Chandler because with some players planning to sue Major League Baseball on antitrust grounds for reinstatement the owners do not want a courtroom challenge to the reserve clause.

1962- The St. Louis Cardinals traded Alex Grammas and Don Landrum to the Chicago Cubs for Daryl Robertson and Bobby Smith.

1987– The San Francisco Giants purchased Ivan de Jesus from the St. Louis Cardinals.

2008– At Nationals Park, Mark Worrell becomes the eighth player in Cardinals history to hit a home run in his first big league at-bat. The rookie reliever, who also pitched two scoreless innings, hit his monstrous three-run blast on a 3-2 pitch from Washington’s Tim Redding in the sixth inning of a 10-9 St. Louis loss.

2009– Twitter reaches a settlement with Tony La Russa, who claimed an unauthorized page on the site that used his name caused emotional distress by mocking his DUI charge and minimizing the loss of two players who had died in recent seasons. The Cardinals’ manager drops his lawsuit when the social network agreed to pay legal fees and to make a donation to his Animal Rescue Foundation.

Tracking Musial’s Home Runs

In 1949, he hit career #119 off Glenn Elliott of Brooklyn with the Cardinals ahead 6-1 in the top of the 6th inning. It was a 2-run home run.

The Cardinals were trailing 9-2 in the bottom of the 8th inning in 1954 when Stan hit #275 facing Murry Dickson with a 2-run homer.

In 1955, Ed Robuck was on the mound when Musial smacked career #301 with a solo home in the 9th inning.

It was on this date in 1962, when Stan Musial hit his 12th and last walk-off home run of his career. He was facing Dave Sisler of the Reds in the 11th with the game tied 9-9 when he blasted the home run.

Birthdays

Chip Coulter (1945) played second base and pinch hit for the Cardinals in 1969. He made his debut on September 18, 1969, and played in 6 games with a .316 average. He played his final game on October 1, 1969, and produced a triple in his last major league at-bat.

Ray Lankford (1967) spent 11 seasons with the Cardinals as he made his debut on August 21, 1997. He amassed 238 home runs and 874 runs batted along with a .272 batting average in his career. He was selected to the 1997 All-Star squad.

Mike Coolbaugh (June 5, 1972 – July 22, 2007) played for the Cardinals in 2002 as a reserve third baseman. In his career, he hit .183 with 2 homers and 7 runs batted in.

On November 8, 2007, MLB general managers decided that base coaches would wear helmets starting in the 2008 season.